Effective date: The interim rule is effective September 15, 2014. Comment date: Comments are due on or before November 10, 2014.

39 CFR Part 111

Summary

To minimize customer confusion and ensure consistent administration, the Postal Service proposes to change the total annual volume thresholds required for USPS Return Services products to qualify for Commercial Plus® pricing. A minimum volume of 50,000 will be established for these products across the board to simplify the product and make it easier for customers to do business with the Postal Service.

The Postal Service will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), to reflect changes to some of the prices for Priority Mail® and the mailing standards for Premium Forwarding Service Commercial TM competitive products.

The Postal Service TM will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) section 604.9 to update the hourly charges and related postage threshold used in assessing certain types of postage refunds and to provide the allowable time periods for requesting refunds for extra service fees.

The enforcement date for the relevant portions of the final rule published December 18, 2013 (78 FR 76548), is delayed indefinitely.

39 CFR Part 111

Summary

The Postal Service gives notice that it is deferring the previously-announced enforcement date of January 25, 2015, for eliminating mailers' option to use Business Reply Mail® to pay postage for parcel-shaped items.

This document corrects an error in the identification of a certain provision of Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), revised in a final rule published in the Federal Register of Thursday, April 18, 2013 (78 FR 23137). The misidentified provision relates to the availability of Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb TM ) Tracing as an additional mailing service.

The compliance date of the relevant portions of the final rule published April 18, 2013 (78 FR 23137) is delayed indefinitely.

39 CFR Part 111

Summary

The Postal Service gives notice that it is deferring the previously-announced compliance date of January 26, 2014, for mailers to use full-service Intelligent Mail® to qualify for automation prices when mailing First-Class Mail®, Standard Mail®; Periodicals®, and Bound Printed Matter® mailpieces.

On September 26, 2013, the Postal Service filed a notice of mailing services price adjustments with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), effective January 26, 2014. This final rule contains the revisions to Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) that we will adopt to implement the changes coincident with the price adjustments.

The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) to require the use of Intelligent Mail® package barcodes (IMpb) on all commercial parcels, and to require the transmission of supporting electronic documentation including piece-level address or ZIP+4® Code information. Included in these new requirements is a per-piece price adjustment for mailpieces not complying with the IMpb standards. The Postal Service is also adding DMM reference to a future requirement to use a complete destination delivery address or an 11-digit delivery point validated ZIP Code TM in the mailer's electronic documentation.

The Postal Service is amending its Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), to reflect changes to prices and mailing standards for certain competitive products.

The Postal Service will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 703.8.0 to require that all ballot types include in the balloting materials a marking to indicate that the proper amount of postage must be paid and the balloting materials must also indicate the specific amount of postage for the return of ballots, unless mailed under certain specified exceptions.

The Postal Service will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 503.13, 507.4 and 508.1 to provide new standards for the automatic holding period for Collect on Delivery (COD) articles, expand the acceptable payment methods for COD articles, and provide current options for the redirecting of COD articles.

This is a list of United States Code sections, Statutes at Large, Public Laws, and Presidential Documents, which provide rulemaking authority for this CFR Part.

Effective date: The interim rule is effective September 15, 2014. Comment date: Comments are due on or before November 10, 2014.

39 CFR Part 111

Summary

To minimize customer confusion and ensure consistent administration, the Postal Service proposes to change the total annual volume thresholds required for USPS Return Services products to qualify for Commercial Plus® pricing. A minimum volume of 50,000 will be established for these products across the board to simplify the product and make it easier for customers to do business with the Postal Service.

The Postal Service proposes to revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) to require the use of an Intelligent Mail® package barcode (IMpb) on Business Reply Mail® (BRM) labels intended for use on cartons, parcel-shaped items, or Priority Mail® items of any shape.

The Postal Service will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), to reflect changes to some of the prices for Priority Mail® and the mailing standards for Premium Forwarding Service Commercial TM competitive products.

The Postal Service TM will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) section 604.9 to update the hourly charges and related postage threshold used in assessing certain types of postage refunds and to provide the allowable time periods for requesting refunds for extra service fees.

The enforcement date for the relevant portions of the final rule published December 18, 2013 (78 FR 76548), is delayed indefinitely.

39 CFR Part 111

Summary

The Postal Service gives notice that it is deferring the previously-announced enforcement date of January 25, 2015, for eliminating mailers' option to use Business Reply Mail® to pay postage for parcel-shaped items.

This document corrects an error in the identification of a certain provision of Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), revised in a final rule published in the Federal Register of Thursday, April 18, 2013 (78 FR 23137). The misidentified provision relates to the availability of Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb TM ) Tracing as an additional mailing service.

The Postal Service TM proposes to revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) section 604.9 to update the hourly charges and related postage threshold used in assessing certain types of postage refunds and to provide the allowable time periods for requesting refunds for extra service fees.

The compliance date of the relevant portions of the final rule published April 18, 2013 (78 FR 23137) is delayed indefinitely.

39 CFR Part 111

Summary

The Postal Service gives notice that it is deferring the previously-announced compliance date of January 26, 2014, for mailers to use full-service Intelligent Mail® to qualify for automation prices when mailing First-Class Mail®, Standard Mail®; Periodicals®, and Bound Printed Matter® mailpieces.

On September 26, 2013, the Postal Service filed a notice of mailing services price adjustments with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), effective January 26, 2014. This final rule contains the revisions to Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) that we will adopt to implement the changes coincident with the price adjustments.

The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) to require the use of Intelligent Mail® package barcodes (IMpb) on all commercial parcels, and to require the transmission of supporting electronic documentation including piece-level address or ZIP+4® Code information. Included in these new requirements is a per-piece price adjustment for mailpieces not complying with the IMpb standards. The Postal Service is also adding DMM reference to a future requirement to use a complete destination delivery address or an 11-digit delivery point validated ZIP Code TM in the mailer's electronic documentation.

The Postal Service is amending its Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), to reflect changes to prices and mailing standards for certain competitive products.

On September 26, 2013, the Postal Service filed a notice of mailing services price adjustments with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), effective January 2014. This proposed rule contains the revisions to Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) that we would adopt to implement the changes coincident with the price adjustments.

The Postal Service will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 703.8.0 to require that all ballot types include in the balloting materials a marking to indicate that the proper amount of postage must be paid and the balloting materials must also indicate the specific amount of postage for the return of ballots, unless mailed under certain specified exceptions.

The Postal Service is proposing to revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) to require the use of Intelligent Mail® package barcodes (IMpb) on all commercial parcels, and to require the transmission of supporting electronic documentation including piece-level address or ZIP+4® Code information effective January 2014. In January 2015 the complete destination delivery address or an 11-digit delivery point validated ZIP Code will be required in the electronic documentation.

The Postal Service will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 503.13, 507.4 and 508.1 to provide new standards for the automatic holding period for Collect on Delivery (COD) articles, expand the acceptable payment methods for COD articles, and provide current options for the redirecting of COD articles.